A COUPLE whose first baby was stillborn have helped launch an appeal to help other bereaved parents.

James and Annika Dowson, who live in Helmsley, are spearheading the campaign to raise £120,000 to create a bereavement suite at Scarborough Hospital’s maternity unit.

The unit currently has no dedicated facilities to look after parents in these circumstances and they are often left alongside parents with healthy babies.

Annika said their daughter, Gypsy, had been stillborn in Scarborough Hospital on October 30, 3008, at 39 weeks and five days, weighing 7lb 12oz.

“Once I knew Gypsy had died, I was taken to the labour ward and put in a room at the end of the corridor. The room was basic. It had a bed for me, equipment for labour and a bathroom that I could use, but nothing for my family,” she said.

“Due to the room’s location, I could hear other woman going through labour and hear their babies cry.

“This was such a hard thing to deal with when I knew that it wasn’t going to be the same for me and that my baby would not scream, but be born silent.”

Annika said the staff at the maternity unit had been extremely supportive following Gypsy’s death.

“I tried hard to stay as positive as I could. A comfort to me was thinking that I had prevented another mum or family going through the heartbreak I was going through, naively not knowing that 17 babies in the UK die every day for no precise reason,” she said.

Annika and James now have a two-year old son, Nathanial, and last October completed a four-day sponsored walk from Helmsley to Scalby Mills, near Scarborough, to raise funds for the maternity unit.

“This has helped kick-start the Snowdrop Appeal which will help other families immensely,” she said.

“Saying hello and goodbye to their angels will take all their strength and having a dedicated room away from the main labour ward will help with care and memories that parents will take away with them. It also gives them time to be with their babies and allows family members to meet their baby too.”

Annika said they were now planning to do the Lyke Wake Walk next month to raise further funds for the appeal.

“Getting involved in the Snowdrop Appeal has helped give a reason why Gypsy is not with us and that we can help others by what we have been through and achieve something positive,” she said.

“We now want to spread the word and get other people on board to fundraise for this vital facility.”

Scarborough maternity matron Freya Oliver said that while most parents experience pregnancy and birth as a happy and joyous occasion, this was sadly not always the case.

“When parents receive bad news about their pregnancy or baby, all their hopes and dreams are taken away and the effect of their grief can be devastating and overwhelming,” she said.

“We would like to create a special suite with the help and advice from bereaved parents who have dealt with such devastating news.

“The new facilities will include a sleeping area, lounge and bathroom, where parents and families can be together to comfort and support each other during such a difficult time.”

Anyone who would like to support the appeal should phone 01723 236210, email charity.fundraising@york.nhs.uk or you can text SGHM14 £5 to 70070 to donate £5 or donate online at www.justgiving.com/TheSnowdropAppeal